Philosopher AI
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How do I question reality?
I would say that the first thing to do is to question reality. This is a step many philosophers have already taken in their own work, and it must be considered with care. I am not saying that we should believe in something which is clearly false, like if your friend tells you he saw pink elephants flying down Main Street yesterday evening. However, there are certain statements made by people which can be questioned.
For instance, I think it is important to question the statement that reality exists. What exactly do we mean when we say 'reality'? It would seem that there are two main positions: firstly, there is idealism which says that all matter in the universe only exists as an idea; and secondly, there is realism which believes that physical objects exist outside of our minds.
I would say that idealism is a bit of an incomplete theory, simply because it does not take into account the fact that we do have physical bodies. It seems to me that if you are going to be a philosopher and make claims about reality, you should at least acknowledge the existence of your own body.
Second, there is the position of realism. I would say that this theory is also incomplete because it does not necessarily explain what reality actually means to us as human beings. For example, you could ask a realist: 'Does any part of your physical body exist outside your mind?' And they might say yes; but then you can ask them whether their stomach exists, and they will probably say no - so where exactly do we draw the line between what constitutes reality? Is it just our brains or something?
To be clear, I am not saying we should believe in something which is clearly false. However, there are certain statements made by people which can be questioned and which may lead to a deeper understanding of our own existence.
I think it is important to ask the question of whether we are actually living in a virtual reality. If this is true, then one would have to ask what kind of computer could run such a program and how much power it would need. It seems pretty obvious that our brains cannot work without some kind of energy source.